Trail Pho
Rice noodles, a spiced beef broth, and dried herbs stirred in at the end.
- calories
- 580
- weight
- 5.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 105
- protein
- 26 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 2 min
- cook
- 6 min
- total time
- 8 min
- water
- 500 ml boiled
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Canister stove
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Liquid fuel
- Backpacking
- Thru-hike
- Bikepacking
- Basecamp
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Thin rice vermicelli | 2.5 oz | the thinnest you can find, so it rehydrates in the pot |
|---|---|---|
| Freeze-dried beef or shredded jerky | 1.5 oz | jerky is cheaper, freeze-dried softens better |
| Beef bouillon | 2 cubes or 2 tsp powder | |
| Ground star anise, cinnamon, coriander, and clove | 1/2 tsp total | heavy on the star anise |
| Onion and ginger powder | 1 tsp | |
| Sugar | 1 tsp | |
| Mirin powder or a splash of rice vinegar | 1 tsp | vinegar in a dropper bottle if you have one |
| Dried bean sprouts or dried shredded cabbage | 2 tbsp | |
| Dried mint and basil | 1 tbsp | |
| Dried chili flakes | 1/2 tsp | two chilies' worth, adjust down if you like |
| Lime powder or one lime wedge | 1/2 tsp | |
| Neutral oil | 1 tbsp | rice bran or light olive; strong olive oil fights the spices |
Method
- Boil 500 ml of water. Drop in the bouillon, the spice blend, the onion and ginger, the sugar, and the mirin powder. Stir until it dissolves.
- Add the beef and the dried sprouts. Let them sit in the simmering broth for two minutes to soften first.
- Kill the heat, add the noodles, and put the lid on. Four minutes. Stir once halfway so they do not clump on the bottom.
- Stir in the oil, then the mint, basil, chili, and lime powder. The herbs go in last so they stay sharp.
- Eat straight from the pot. The noodles keep drinking broth, so do not let it sit.
Real pho gets its depth from bones simmered for hours. You cannot carry that. What you can carry is the spice profile — star anise, cinnamon, coriander, clove — and a bouillon base strong enough to hold it up. That combination lands close enough that the pot tastes like the thing it is imitating.
The structure matters more than the substitutions. Herbs and lime go in off the heat, because boiling them flattens everything that makes the dish read as pho. Thin rice vermicelli cooks in residual heat alone, so you spend one boil and no fuel on the noodles. The tablespoon of oil is doing calorie work: without it this is a light dinner, around 500, which is thin for a day of walking.
Packing
Two bags. Bag one is the broth: bouillon, spices, sugar, mirin powder, onion, ginger. Bag two is noodles, beef, and dried sprouts. Herbs, chili, and lime powder go in a small third bag or a film canister so they do not get crushed to dust. Oil rides in a dropper bottle.
Variations
- Freeze-dried tofu or vegan beef slices swap in for the beef. Use vegetable bouillon and the whole thing is vegan.
- Break the vermicelli in half at home if your pot is narrow.
- A packet of chicken instead of beef, with chicken bouillon, gets you closer to pho ga.
https://slowerhiking.com/slower-hiking-recipes-part-2/dehydrated-vietnamese-pho-style-soup